Tension-regulating device for spindle-driving bands



(No Model.) 7

' W. DOOTSON.

TENSION RVEGULATING DEVICE FOR SPINDLE DRIVING BANDS.

No. 447,301. v Patented Mar. 3,1891.

illlllllllll a'nvamtoz 351*}, Momen a y UNITED STATES PATENT FFICE.

ILLIAM DOOTSON, OF ATHENS, GEORGIA.

TENSION-REGULATING DEVICE FOR SPINDLE-DRIVING BANDS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent N 0. 447.301, dated March3, 1891.

Application filed January 25, 1890. Serial No. 338,049. (No model.)

To LtZZ whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, WILLIAM DOOTSON, a citizen of the United States, andresiding at Athens, Clarke county, State of Georgia, have inventedcertain new and useful Improvements in Tension Regulating Devices forSpindle-Driving Bands, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to tightening devices for taking up the slack ofspindle-driving bands and it consists of a simple device that can beeasily applied to the ordinary throstle or other spinning machines andwill constantly keep the band at a uniform tension upon the spindles,thus insuring their uniform rotation and consequently uniform threads,as will be hereinafter more particularly set forth.

Referring to the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a plan view of thedrum and spindles of an ordinary spinning-machine, showing mytension-regulating device applied to the band. Fig. 2 is a side view ofthe device, partly in section. Figs. 3 and 4 are plan views of differentparts of the same. Figs, 5 V

and 6 show an attachment for adj ustably securing it to the throstle,and Figs. 7, 8, and 9 represent slight modifications.

In throstles or spinning-machines to which my invention is to beapplied, A represents the drum or driving-cylinder; B B, the wheels orpulleys for rotating the spindles, and G the band which passesalternately around the drum and the pulleys. As these parts of thespinning-machine are of the ordinary construction and are driven in anywell-known manner from any suitable motor, further description orillustration of them is not necessary.

It has been found that owing to the length of the band required to passsuccessively around the large drum and a great number of pulleys it isapt to give or stretch to a certain extent by constant use, and alsothat it is affected by the condition of the atmosphere in the room, andthus at different times bears with a different tension upon the pulleysand consequently gives a greater or less twist to the threads unlesssome means be adopted for regulating the tension of the band and keepingit uniform. My invention therefore consists of a tension-regulatorwhereby to automatically take up slack or relieve the band in case ofshrinkage, and is in the form of a grooved pulley, around which passesaloop of the band, having a spring-bearing whereby it will yield to thedraft of the loop, but tend to hold the latter taut. The said pulley Lis preferably arranged within a short loop formed by drawing the handback between two adjacent pulleys b and 1), which will thus require ashorter band, as the .loop is passed over the pulley instead of over thelarge drum A, as with the other loops, and as so much of the band willbe wrapped around the pulley there will be less danger of its slippingoff than with the old-style regulator. One means of operating the pulleyL is by mounting it upon the free end of a lever K, which may bespring-actuated, and will thus draw the pulley into the loop with aconstant and uniform tension. The lever K may be castin one piece havinga hole bored at one end for attaching it to its support; or it may bemade in two pieces which can be bolted or otherwise secured together.The support for the lever consists of a pin F, which projects throughthe hole in the pivoted end of the lever. The pin F may be on a stand I,as shown in Fig. 1, on the floor beneath the machine, or it may besecured to a stud or bolt R, attached directly to the machine in anyconvenient position. The spring M for operating the lever is attached atone end to the pin F by means of a catch or projection O and at theother end to the lever K by means of a pin N, which projects downthrough the lever into a small loop or eye in the end of the spring. Nowby turning or rotating the pin F the spring can be coiled or wound up tosuch an extent that it will cause the pulley L at the free end of the lever to be drawn into the loop of the band C to any desired degree, thusenabling a greater or less degree of strain or tension to be eX- ertedupon the band. After the spring has been thus Wound up the base 1) andwith it the pin F is held stationary or kept from turning back by meansof a set-screw X, which engages with the stud or bolt R, upon which thebase is supported and which projects into the socket E. The sweep of thefree end of the lever in either direction is limited by a pin S, whichis put down through the end of the lever K and engages with the stops '1'l, which are located within a flange or wall G around the base D at thebottom of the pin F. The base D is round and large enough to form areceptacle. or housing for the spring M, and the pivoted end of thelever K is made circular and broad enough, as shown at .I, to extend outover the flange G, and thus form a cover over the cup-like base and itscontents. A nut H keeps the lever from coming off the end of the pin Fand at the same time permits of the ready removal of the lever fortaking out or replacing the spring or for any other purpose.

Instead of securing the spring M to the lever and pin, as abovedescribed, it can be secured by making the parts as shown in Figs. 7, S,and 9, in which one end of the spring is secured to a pin 6 in theenlarged portion of the base D, and the otherend is made straight andfits within a slot 5 in thehnb of the lever K. In either way ofattaching it the action of the spring will be the same-thatis, whenwound up it will constantly draw the pulley I, away from the pulleys Band into the loop in the band C.

It sometimes happens that when the band is new or damp it will stretchbeyond the limit of the sweep of the free end of the lever K, and thusmake it necessary to stop the machine and cut and splice the band unlessotherwise provided for. To obviate this difficulty, I prefer to securethe base D to the machine adj ustabl y by means of a slotted bracket U,(shown in Figs. 5 and (3 and dotted in Fig. 1,) which is clamped to themachine by means of the set-screw V and slot Z at one end.

The stud or pin R, on which the base D is secured, passes through theslot in the bracket U, and is secured at any desired point by means of aWing-nut IV, which screws up on the stud against the side of the bracketand holds the device wherever desired. In this manner where the band istoo long for the slack to be taken up by the lever when secured in oneplace the stud can be slipped along the slot until the lever has beenmoved far enough to enable the pulley at its end to take up whateverslack may be in the band.

\Vithout limiting myself to the exact construction shown, I claim In aband-tension for spinning-machines, the combination, with a fixedbracket orsupport and a base adjustable thereon, having an enlarged orcup-shaped portion and a centrally-arranged pin, of a lever pivoted onsaid pin, having a covering portion J and a tension-pulley at its freeend, and a spring within the cup-shaped portion, one end 01: which isconnected to the base and the other end to the lever, substantially asdescribed.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in thepresence of two subscribing witnesses.

'WILLIAM D O O'lS O N.

Vitnesses:

L. SoI-IEvENELL, G. A. HELL.

